Spotlight: Alzheimer’s and HFC
Recently, someone asked if I planned to add other elder life-ending issues (besides Alzheimer’s and dementia) to my “sh*tty stuff that happens” section.
That question sent me down a mental wormhole because my first inclination was, “Of course!” and the next was, “OMG how many would that be??”
When I review the Rolodex O’Death from my own elders and elders-in-law, causes include COPD (times two), cancer (times two), and kidney failure, simply as a function of a broken-down body that had to succumb to something. The Mom and Mom-in-Law who are left seem poised to go down the latter path, since neither is suffering from any chronic issue or illness that is likely to get them, even though they are 86 and 88, respectively.
Which is why I had to take the time to review the facts on Alzheimer’s to understand why it is such a prominent topic among elder caregivers and experts (besides the obvious: it sucks for everyone involved). Consider these sobering statistics from the Alzheimer’s Association:
1 in 3 seniors dies with Alzheimer’s or another dementia. It kills more than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined.
In the US, Alzheimer’s and dementia deaths have increased 16% during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Between 2000 and 2019, the number of deaths from Alzheimer’s disease as recorded on death certificates has more than doubled, increasing 145.2%, while the number of deaths from the number one cause of death (heart disease) decreased by 7.3%.
More than 11 million Americans provide unpaid care for people with Alzheimer’s or other dementias. In 2020, these caregivers provided an estimated 15.3 billion hours of care valued at nearly $257 billion.
In 2021, Alzheimer’s and other dementias will cost the nation $355 billion. By 2050, these costs could rise as high as $1.1 trillion.
So, I understand why so many of the elder / caregiver newsletters I receive are offering Alzheimer’s insights, the most recent of which highlighted HFC founders Lauren Miller Rogen and Seth Rogen (yes, that Seth Rogen).
What I love about their site, besides its fresh design (i.e. non-morbid and modern) is that it is present AND future-focused: “HFC is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to care for families facing this disease, educate young people about living a brain-healthy life, and activate the next generation of Alzheimer’s advocates.” And what I love about how HFC (formerly Hilarity for Charity) started is that they, like I, value “the idea that laughter could help those living in darkness.”
Last but not least, who doesn’t enjoy a little retail therapy in the thick of sh*tty stuff?? I am ALL about symbolic swag that supports a cause.